


Magic the Gathering: Ravnica

by WriterCookies (LewdCookies)



Category: Magic: The Gathering (Card Game)
Genre: Adventure, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Fantasy, Fiction, Fluff and Humor, Half-Elves, High Fantasy, Humor, Magic, Nivix, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Ravnica (Magic: The Gathering), Riddles, Short One Shot, Wizard, body swapping, sphinx
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-14
Updated: 2020-01-15
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:48:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22256713
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LewdCookies/pseuds/WriterCookies
Summary: The adventures of Iskra Szép, half-elf wizard.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 3





	1. A battle of wits

Iskra’s heart was beating like a Gruul war drum as she tried to make herself as small as possible. Hiding in a gap between a pair of large bookshelves she was eyeing the opening nervously. It was only through concerted mental effort that she managed to control her breathing again. The noise of her chipped breaths seemed to echo throughout the large room in her ears. Outside in the large library, there was someone or something, looking for her.

She knew she had been onto something special when she had come across an old diary entry that had made mention of a private collection that had recently changed owners. Although recently might’ve been a rather generous phrase as the entry was dated at least a couple of hundred years ago. The previous owner’s demise had not been made entirely clear but she reckoned it had probably happened through some underhanded means. But what had been far more interesting had been some of the books mentioned in the collection. While there wasn’t any complete records, and she had furiously searched the libraries records for one, there were mentions of books such as _The Colours of Mana_ and _The Compendium of Rites and Summons_. She had to stop herself from outright salivating onto the pages when she read those titles. Back when she had still been part of the Izzet guild she had only seen parts of either of those books in reference material. Just the thought of getting a chance to even lay her eyes on one of them felt like a dream come true. After a few frantic hours of cross referencing other sources and pouring over maps of the city she had managed to pinpoint the last known location of the collection. In this case to a tower located in the third district of the city. She was confident that the collection, or hopefully parts of it at least, was still there. Despite the fact that all entries she had found being at least a few centuries old at least. If not she might even find something else. The same entries had also made mention of a number of magical items also being present. So either way she had reckoned, she might be able to find something that would make it all worth it for her.

But those ideas seemed so far away now as she cowered in the shadows. The tower hadn’t been abandoned, not by a longshot. Iskra chided herself for not paying better attention. The signs had all been there. From the lack of dust to the lit torches. Not to mention the place smelt inhabited. She had been inside enough abandoned and dusty libraries to realize that they smelled very different. But she admitted to herself that the sight of the library she had suddenly stepped inside had bedazzled her. If she hadn’t knocked the giant tome off the shelf as she searched through the shelves, she might not have found herself in this situation. If Lukasz learned of her rookie mistake she’d hear no end of it from him. Depending of course if she managed to get out alive.

As the giant thud from the book hitting the carpeted floor had echoed through the room, she had heard something stir elsewhere. In response she had panicked slightly and went for the nearest hiding space she could find. Which was why she was squeezed in between a pair of large bookshelves. The gap big enough for her to fit inside, with some discomfort, while standing up.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as Iskra listened and waited for whoever or whatever that counted this place as their residence searched for her. She fully expected to be found, and the last thing she’d seen was a giant hand or something pulling her out to meet a grizzly end. She shuddered slightly and decided not to think about that. However, at the same time her natural curiosity pondered over her current situation. She found it better to occupy her thoughts with something than letting boredom settle in.  
So who, or what for that part, would call an old tower such as this one their home?  
Firstly there was the location. It had taken her nearly a week’s worth of traveling to get to it, even if that was perhaps more due to the size of the city itself. Not to mention she had to travel mostly by foot. But at the same time it was located in a very much abandoned part of the city. Surrounded by a multitude of decrepit buildings it was an odd pillar of civilization amidst a sea of ruin. But that was the thing, it lay isolated. Located in what you essentially could call hostile wildlands.  
Although, she added quickly, in Ravnica it was sometimes quite hard to tell where civilization and wildlands began or ended.  
Secondly there was the rest of the tower itself. It was empty. She had spent almost a day exploring the inside of the tower as she had ascended it. All she had really seen was empty rooms and dusty furniture.  
At the same time she wasn’t much clearer on who had owned it. Or owns it. It wasn’t until she had reached what she assumed was the top floors that she had realized that was still inhabited.  
So who or what would confine themselves to the upper levels of a tower and left the rest to gather dust?  
The fact that the tower was still in one piece was still a bit of a mystery to her as well. But she figured, based on a few calculated guesses backed up by some arcane sensing, that powerful magic was involved somehow. Not that it managed to clear up her current little mystery all that much.   
If anything, she thought to herself, in its heyday the place must’ve looked spectacular. With some thorough cleaning she could even imagine herself living here. Even if it was perhaps a bit too isolated for her own tastes perhaps.

Overpowered by her ever-present curiosity regarding the towers mysteries Iskra slowly shimmied out of her hiding space. The fact that the spot had quickly turned uncomfortable did not help much for that part. Hiding in small spaces had become considerably much more difficult as she grew up, and filled out she reckoned as well. The experience reminded her slightly of being squeezed inside a corset laced too tightly. She made a sour grimace at the thought and wondered how some could even put up with them like that. There was nothing wrong with wearing corsets but they shouldn’t be so tightly laced that you’d feel your ribs bend inwards. Suddenly she remembered her current predicament and duly realized that perhaps it was high time to pay more attention to her surroundings. 

However emerging back into the aisle she found it empty. Nothing but a long row of tantalizing bookshelves. The only other thing nearby was the large tome, still lying on the floor where she had left it in a hurry. Iskra carefully picked it up and slid it back into its rightful place on the shelf. That’s when she noticed another book next to it on the shelf. It was a much smaller book in comparison. Pulling it out she noticed the cover was made out of black… silk? She looked at it confused for a moment, wondering why someone would make a book cover out of silk instead of leather. The book seemed to lack any title as far as she could tell, even if there was something embossed onto the cover page. But what it was she couldn’t see clearly enough in the slightly dim light. The book also seemed to be locked, based on the tab on the front. But at the same time she couldn’t see any keyhole so how it was unlocked was also a bit of a mystery to her.  
When she realized she had managed to get herself distracted once again she felt somewhat sheepish. Casting a few furtive glances around her, she acted against her better judgement. Slipping the book quietly into her backpack, far too fascinated by it to really let it go. If she managed to get herself out of this pace alive she didn’t want to get away completely empty handed. In an attempt to cover up her theft she quickly rearranged the books on the shelf to fill the gap before turning around to leave. 

Suddenly she found herself in a large open space, not entirely sure how she had managed to get there in the first place. It hadn’t been anything she had come across when she had explored earlier. Iskra had the troubling feeling that she had somehow been led here.   
By whoever was the master of the tower, she reckoned as well. Because it would seem foolish to assume the tower itself had done so. Even if it wasn’t unknown that a building could be so steeped in arcane energies that... She pushed her latest mental diatribe to the side and tried to focus on the matter at hand.  
The fact that she might have been led to this spot did imply a considerable aptitude in the arcane arts, she thought, which was... worrying to say the least.  
She heard something move behind her and as she turned around.  
On her list of “things she really didn’t want to encounter”, she’d rank this one somewhere in the middle of it.

If it had been standing up it, she would’ve reached up to its thigh, but now it was lying down on a large plush carpet.  
The first detail Iskra noticed was it had the body of a lion, complete with a long tail behind it that ended with a bushy tip. Its entire body was sky blue or azure in colour.   
The second detail she noticed was the large feathered wings on its shoulders, which were currently pulled close to the body.   
Lastly, she saw the head, long locks of blue hair falling down like a waterfall over its shoulders, alongside a feminine looking face. A pair of dark eyes studied her with equal measures of suspicion and… amusement? That seemed odd, she thought.  
It was a sphinx.  
She had somehow managed to stumble into the lair of a sphinx.   
Oh pizdec, was the first thought that popped into her head. After that she wished she was pretty much anywhere else other than here.

Iskra flinched and stepped back in surprise as the sphinx suddenly rose up on its feet. There was a flicker of amusement on its face at her reaction. In the back of her mind she wondered for how long it had known about her presence. Since she had set her foot inside the tower? Or stepped inside the library? No way to tell for sure, she reckoned. Either way, her chances at making it out of this situation alive were now rapidly decreasing.  
Then again, she thought with a slight frown, there must be a reason for this behaviour. If it had known about her being her from the beginning, then why wasn’t she already dead? No, it wanted something from her. But exactly what does it want?

The sphinx began pacing in a wide circle around her, studying her intently as it did. The thing made no noise as it moved. Iskra could feel a brief sense of dread gripping her as it moved behind her, expecting it to pounce upon her at a moment’s notice. When it spoke, its voice was melodious and obviously female, but it carried an undercurrent of malice to it as well.  
“I see a trespasser has entered my domains. A halfblood that smells of both blue and red. But yet she does not seem to be part of that guild. Curious.”  
Iskra’s only reaction to the comment about her heritage was an annoyed twitch of her eyebrows. It was not the first time she had been called a halfblood, being born from both human and elven parents, but it was a term she still greatly disliked. The sphinx continued prowling around her while talking.  
“Very curious indeed. I wonder what brought her here?”  
In the back of her mind Iskra knew it was toying with her. But that did not make her feel less nervous. She was, after all, standing in front of a sphinx. They were considered to be very powerful creatures in their own right. From what she could remember they were capable sensing if you were telling the truth or not. An ability that the Azorius Senate treasured very highly she also remembered. This obviously meant she had to choose what she said very carefully. Meanwhile, the sphinx continued.  
“She can not be lost, I know this as much. My tower far beyond the reach of the city. So she must have come here for a reason. But what might that be?”  
The sphinx’s prowling slowed down and its voice took on a far more menacing town.  
“Has she come to steal from me?”  
It pronounced the word steal with a snarl for emphasis. Iskra worried if the sphinx knew about the little black book in her backpack or not. But the less it knew about that the better she reasoned to herself.  
“Has she come to rob me of my treasures?!”  
Iskra amazingly enough held her ground as the sphinx seemed to lunge at her for emphasis. Inside she was deathly afraid but knew that running or doing anything would simply provoke it. The sphinx stopped and regarded her for a moment before moving back slightly to resume its pacing around her.  
“Perhaps she expected the tower to be empty and abandoned. Maybe she was not aware that it now belongs to the great Nepheli.”  
Well she knew the sphinx’s name now, Iskra thought bemused before wondering what other things it might divulge if she kept quiet.  
“Maybe she wasn’t aware that I, the magnificent Nepheli, took over residence of this tower after its previous owner had been hunted by the firemind.”  
Iskra frowned. The Firemind? That would Niv-Mizzet the dra- Her eyebrows arched upwards as it suddenly dawned upon her. This had been a dragon’s tower before. Suddenly its purpose and design made a lot more sense to her. If a dragon was behind its construction that would explain how it managed to be so intact. Not to mention its height and size in comparison to the surrounding buildings, she added wryly.  
Nepheli had resumed pacing around her, but now there was less of a hungry prowl to her movement and more of a swagger as she began boasting.  
“I, the splendid Nepheli, has kept these rare books and artifacts safe from thieves and looters for centuries now.”  
Iskra wondered to herself just how many people had actually stumbled upon the tower before her. Considering she had to jump through a second storey window to get inside she figured it wasn’t all that many in reality. But she was not going to point that out.  
Nepheli sat down in front of her on her haunches, looking at her somewhat magnanimously. Iskra had to look upwards to meet her gaze.  
“I should devour you on the spot for trespassing,” the sphinx continued, almost somewhat nonchalantly, “But seeing as I am feeling gracious. I shall however give you a chance to survive. If you manage to solve my riddle, you are free to go.”

This was what the Nepheli wanted from her Iskra realized. In a way she figured the sphinx was either bored and relishing in the sudden company. Regardless of how temporary it might be in this case. Or she was looking to prove her own superiority before devouring her. Either way, Iskra reckoned, she really didn’t have much to lose. For all she knew, she added with a mental shrug, she might even be able to turn it into her favour somehow. For dramatic flair she folded her arms over her chest before proclaiming her answer.  
“I, Iskra, accept your challenge.”  
“Excellent!” Nepheli said, the obvious delight on her face and in her voice was almost somewhat endearing to Iskra. The sphinx lay down on the giant plush carpet again.  
“Hmm, which one should I take?” Her face scrunched up slightly as she thought, a large paw almost tapping on her chin. Iskra had to bite the inside of her mouth to stop her from giggling at the sight. The sphinx now almost behaving like an overeager child, which was a far cry from the imperious appearance she had put on earlier.  
“Oh, I know which one! You can possibly answer this one!”  
Nepheli straightened up herself slightly before speaking.  
“I fall a yellow fork from tables in the sky, By Nature’s forceful whimsy drops the lethal cutlery, Accumulating hidden strength but never quite concealed, I strike at those within the dark; their ignorance revealed.”  
After she had finished the sphinx glanced down at Iskra, looking rather smug with itself. Meanwhile Iskra’s brow furrowed slightly as she began thinking. Her grey eyes looking focused underneath her wrinkled brow.  
“What’s the matter? Can’t figure it out?” Nepheli said gloatingly.   
Iskra ignored her, far too focused on trying to figure out the answer as she rested her chin in her hand.   
“Oh, I know,” she said suddenly, almost on the verge of snapping one of her fingers in the process, “It’s lightning.”  
“Hah!” Nepheli said with a scoff. “I knew it, you couldn’t answer it- Wait what did you say?”  
“Lightning,” Iskra repeated, “I mean the part about yellow fork tripped me slightly for a moment there since I think they’re a bit more white. But then-”

Iskra stopped talking as she suddenly noticed the slightly crestfallen look on the sphinx’s face. She figured that she had surprised the sphinx by actually answering the riddle correctly. In a way that made her feel kind of bad but at the same time she wasn’t really looking forward to getting devoured. It was not like she was a follower of Rakdos or something.  
“How about this,” she said to the now sulking sphinx, “Let’s make things a bit more interesting. Say a game between us, say three riddles each. If I answer any of yours wrong you can eat me if you’d like.”  
“Hmm, that does seem interesting. I mean I obviously chose an easy riddle for you to answer because I rarely get any visitor-”  
Nepheli abruptly stopped herself from talking. The poor thing was so bored and desperate for company that it was almost adorable, Iskra thought to herself. She had to force herself not to smile at the sight of a suddenly embarrassed looking Sphinx glancing sideways with an awkward look on her face.  
“However,” she then added, “If I get all of your riddles right, I get to take something from your library.”  
Aside from the book she had already taken on the sly, she added mentally to herself. Somewhat glad that Sphinx’s couldn’t read minds. Also, she figured that due to the fact the sphinx not knowing about her taking the other book before this didn’t constitute a lie. Or so she hoped.  
Nepheli looked conflicted for a moment and Iskra wondered if she wasn’t just going to let her go instead. The sphinx seemed to be rather attached to her collection of books and trinkets. She figured that they were what she spent the most time since she lacked company. To which Iskra suddenly felt a pang of resemblance followed by a quick stab of guilt.  
"I… accept!” The sphinx replied with some initial hesitation, “I know I have some riddles that you’ll never figure out!”  
Looks like she’s regaining confidence again, Iskra thought bemused. She was almost beginning to wonder if the Sphinx actually intended to kill her if she answered a riddle wrong or not. But at the same time she wasn’t really inclined to test that theory anytime soon. Meanwhile, Nepheli busied herself by figuring out her next riddle.

“What can be learned only when it’s guessed? What carries risk, even when assessed? What can you ask only when you know? What even now perplexes you so?”  
Iskra’s mouth drew into a tight line as she began thinking. Did the riddle refer to either theories or hypotheses? Or did it refer to something else?  
Meanwhile Nepheli looked triumphantly at her as Iskra began pacing around in a circle.  
“Can’t figure out can you? I knew I could come up with one that you couldn’t crack.”  
Iskra suddenly stopped dead in her tracks and looked at the gloating sphinx.  
“Oh, the answer is riddle.”  
Nepheli’s face fell once again, and she looked sullen once more.  
“But I must say you almost had me there, I have to admit,” Iskra quickly added, “Because I had overlooked the possibility of it being self-referential in a way. So well done there.”  
The sphinx seemed to take the compliment better than Iskra had expected somewhat.  
“O-of course! Only the fantastic Nepheli could do something as brilliant like that!”  
Iskra was quickly beginning to realize that sphinx’s behaviour could almost be comparable to cats to a certain extent. They seemed to relish in any compliments and attention they received. Granted, she thought as she studied the beaming sphinx, when you’ve seemingly spent a long time by yourself in a tower like this she figured any attention is nice.  
“Are you ready for my next riddle? This one will be tougher I can assure you.”  
“Go right ahead,” Iskra replied with a nod.

“Parents often pray for me when children don’t relent, But never do I ever mean to give consent, I am sometimes found pregnant, other moments I conspire, You can speak my name to break me, if that is your desire.”  
“Oh, that’s silence,” Iskra said almost instantly.  
Nepheli almost looked like she was on the verge of tears. Which was an odd thing to see for Iskra, and she felt her view of sphinx’s as rather majestic creatures had been somewhat tarnished by now. She was beginning to feel rather sheepish all of a sudden as she looked at the sullen sphinx lying on her large plush carpet. Nepheli almost looked a bit pitiful, which was odd to say about a creature that could probably crush her with one paw or fling her out a window with ease.  
“Ehm, maybe I should see myself out instead,” Iskra said somewhat awkwardly.  
To which the sphinx looked at her somewhat aghast.  
“What? No no no no, why?” Nepheli asked almost pleadingly.  
“Well…” Iskra trailed off slightly, looking at the giant sphinx, “How should I put this? Your riddles… They aren’t that great.”  
She gave Nepheli a weak smile. In response the sphinx began to wail and buried her face in her paws.  
“I kneeeeeew iiiiit!” she said before she began sobbing.  
Iskra’s mouth opened and closed for a couple of seconds as she looked at Nepheli. She wasn’t really sure what she could do at this point. In a way she felt overwhelmed, she had come here to find old magical books and artifacts, not a lonesome sphinx looking for someone to challenge in a game of wits. It wasn’t as if she had comforted sobbing sphinxes before. Or really spoken to one before this point as well. She was not one to really deal with the Azorius Senate unless necessary and had only read about them in her books. She probably should leave, but that felt honestly kind of terrible to her. In a way she had been kind of mean to the thing, almost exploiting it for her own gain. Iskra let out a slight sigh and approached the bawling sphinx carefully. She sat down in front of Nepheli as she continued to sob.  
“Nepheli,” She began hesitantly, “I think I owe you an explanation or something in the likes of that.”

She began to slowly explain how she managed to find the tower and how she made her way to it from across the city and her motivations as to why she had done so. She decided on not skipping anything, figuring that the sphinx might just detect that she was lying or hiding something from her. Starting off slightly awkwardly she felt the words came out easier as things progressed. It was an oddly cathartic feeling for her, as she was not completely used to duplicity. A major reason why she had left the Izzet guild not too long ago and opened up her own shop in the city. She was simply not adept at playing the politics game and been outplayed by someone else and had her research and accompanying fame taken from her. About halfway through her confession the sphinx had stopped sobbing and while Iskra expected her to kill her on the spot she instead listened intently as she talked. Or simply blathered on.  
“So I guess that’s my confession. I’m sorry I… tried to use you for my own gain. It’s just that…”  
Iskra stopped herself as she gathered her thoughts a bit. Her previous confidence having somewhat evaporated and she was hesitant to meet the sphinx’s look.  
“I got a bit greedy and found a way to exploit that. I’m sorry.”  
It was this point she expected the sphinx to slay her on the spot but instead she didn’t seem to do anything but study her before speaking.  
“I should kill you for this,” Nepheli began, “But seeing as you are telling the truth, I see no reason why I should. Not to mention, you did answer all my riddles correctly. So by the letter of the law I should let you go.”  
Iskra felt a wave of relief wash over her. Suddenly it was Nepheli’s turn to look a bit awkward.  
“Did you really mean it that my riddles were terrible?”  
“They kind of were,” Iskra replied with a slight nod.  
Nepheli looked a bit disappointed.  
“But I spent so long making them up and everything,” she said with a disappointed pout.  
“I’m sure you’ll come up with something better later. Oh! Before I forget.”  
Iskra slung the backpack off her shoulder before pulling out the black book she had previously taken from the shelf.  
“I should give this back to you.”  
However when Nepheli saw the book, she suddenly seemed to look slightly flustered and seemed to blush.  
“No in fact I believe you can keep it.”  
Iskra looked at the sphinx slightly confused.  
“But I took it from your shelves so?”  
“The splendid Nepheli insists that you should have that book. See it as… a token of good faith in this case.”  
She wasn’t completely buying the sphinx’s explanation, the slightly flustered expression on her face seemed to tell another story. But at the same time she didn’t want to look a gift krovod in the mouth once more and put the book back in her backpack. She thought she saw the sphinx smile bemused at her for a second but she might just have been imagining things.

Iskra slung the backpack back on her shoulder again.  
“Well goodbye Nepheli, it’s been… a strange pleasure talking to you.”  
“The same Iskra. Ehm…”  
The sphinx looked awkwardly to the side for a moment.  
“Yes?”  
“Is there any chance you might come back again?” She asked slightly embarrassed, “The marvelous Nepheli would very much like that.”  
Iskra looked at the sphinx before she smiled.  
“I’m sure that’s a possibility.”  
Nepheli seemed to brighten considerably at her reply.  
“Then the benevolent Nepheli will make sure to come up with several riddles for you to answer when that happens again!”


	2. Quickchange

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A spell goes awry

Something was off.  
As she opened her eyes, finding herself lying on the floor of her library slash laboratory and staring at the roof, Iskra knew that something was wrong. Even if she had a hard time pinpointing what it was exactly. She rose up, reeling slightly as her head suddenly spun, and rubbed the bridge of her nose as if trying to rub out the pounding headache she was feeling. Iskra opened her eyes again.  
The hand in front of her wasn’t hers.  
She jerked backwards, only topple backwards back onto the carpet as her head spun again and she let out a groan.  
With a voice that wasn’t hers either.  
Iskra clamped her mouth shut, a slight sense of panic beginning to creep over her. Despite the oppressive headache she began trying to piece together what happened.

From what she could remember she had been studying a spell she had found in a book she had gotten as a gift from a Sphinx she had bested in a riddle contest. Even if that was a gross exaggeration as Nepheli’s riddles had been somewhat lacking. But nevertheless she had been given the black leatherbound tome by the Sphinx as a parting gift. With the business involving the Byzir and the charges against her and her friends lifted she had suddenly found herself with a lot more free time at her hands. Time she had spent studying the contents of the tome among other things. Which had been… interesting to say the least. But as she had been studying the spell she suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder. After that things went black.  
Iskra’s train of thought was suddenly derailed when she heard a groan coming from behind her.  
The voice was hers.

Looking at herself from the outside had always been an odd experience. She had done it a couple of times through her familiar. But this was still different because bats had a very different way of looking at the world unlike how she saw things. She, or her body she figured, stirred and sat up on her knees.  
“Oy pizdec, my head hurts. What happened Isk-”  
Her reaction was pretty much the same as her as she suddenly stopped talking and then looked around confused until she looked in her direction. Her eyes widened in surprise and she gawped.  
“Aaah! What the hell am I doing over there?!”  
“Wait,” Iskra suddenly said with a voice that wasn’t hers but as she spoke she began to recognize it, “Lukasz?”

The reflection of the male devarkin elf that was her childhood friend stared back at her in the mirror. She gave her, or his, cheek an experimental poke and the elf in the reflection followed suit. She pinched herself and winced, confirming that she wasn’t dreaming or anything. She heard an appreciative noise behind her and saw her half-elf self posing in front of her full-length mirror in various suggestive poses.  
“Could you stop that? It’s kind of creepy,” she remarked annoyed.  
“Oh please. Like you’ve never done this before,” Lukasz replied back with a smirk.  
“Not really,” she replied with a shake of her head.  
Lukasz’s reply was just a scoff before his, or hers, hands went for her chest.  
“Could you not do that? That’s even creepier.”  
“Fine you spoilsport. But how can you even move with these things? They’re like a pair of counterweights or something.”  
“I could say the same about you,” she replied somewhat testily.  
Walking around in her new body was still a weird experience and even after trying to get used to it her movements were awkward. Not to mention she still hadn’t gotten used to the odd sensation of the thing between her legs.  
“But I never knew that silk could feel so good though.”  
“Lukasz!” She snapped, “Please!”  
“Sorry.”  
Despite his excuse he couldn’t help but to check out his new body in the mirror. Iskra sighed with obvious disgust and went over to the book, still laying on the table. She flipped back and forth a bit until she found the page again.  
“Oh, looks like I read the title incorrectly. This isn’t a polymorph spell but a body swapping spell.”  
“Wait, why were you studying a polymorph spell?” Lukasz asked curiously.  
“I err,” she stammered before deflecting his question with her own, “Why were you sneaking up on me like that? Learn to bloody knock!”  
“I thought you were just reading something and not trying to cast a spell.”  
Lukasz pouted at her and Iskra couldn’t help but to feel slightly weirded out by it. Also that she looked far too adorable while doing it. No wonder Lukasz seemed to relent whenever she did.  
“Fine, then I guess we’re both at fault here.”  
She shook her, his, head and went back to reading through the spell instructions. Trying to gleam some way of reversing its effects.

“The instructions says that the effects can either be reversed by saying the counterspell or waiting until it runs out.”  
“So for how long does it last?”  
Iskra looked back at the page.  
“Somewhere between thirty minutes to an hour. But considering you interrupted me mid-casting Niv knows how long it might actually be.”  
“So until then we’re stuck like this?” He asked  
“Unless I try using the counterspell that is,” she replied as she studied the book.  
“Shame,” Lukasz said quietly to himself, “I certainly don’t mind this at all.”  
Iskra looked up from reading the tome.  
“What was that?”   
“Oh nothing,” Lukasz beamed a smile an innocent her.  
She looked back at him, or her, dubiously before going back to reading the page. Mouthing the words for the counterspell under her breath. She looked up again, an annoyed look over her face.  
“Could you please stop groping my body?!”


	3. Counterflux

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iskra goes back to correct an old mistake.

Iskra’s boot heels clacked loudly against the stone floor as she strode down one of the many hallways that crisscrossed the insides of the Nivix, the Izzet League guild hall. Her face was calm and composed, grey eyes steely looking forward. Her long dark purple hair was braided together, the thing swaying from side to side as she moved with a purpose. Her rapier strapped and her heavy spellbook strapped to her belt. Ahead of her Izzet magewright's parted to the side as she walked. The same motley collection of ever curious and diligent researchers dressed in clothes covered with scorch and acid burns from various experiments that she remembered from back then. Some of them barely paying her any attention before scurrying on, their heads filled with new ideas and experiments. She heard the hushed conversations between them as she passed. People either vaguely seemed remembered her or was simply wondering who she was and why she was here. The hallways were as she remembered them as well, marked from countless of magical experiments. Solid dark stonework everywhere, sometimes bleached or discolored. There hadn’t been any point to any tapestries or carpets, they wouldn’t have survived for long anyway. Doorways leading to various laboratories everywhere she could see. Noises and fumes pouring through open, or missing, doors. The air simply reeked, with so many different smells mixed together that it all just congealed into a pervasive stench that seemed to cling to everything.  
Somewhere the distance someone’s experiment came to a sudden and explosive end.

She was glad she had told Lukasz to stay behind after getting her inside through a side entrance she remembered using back then. The last thing she wanted him to do was to accidentally stumble into someone else's experiment. Not that he had approved and wanted to follow after just in case but she had turned him down. Navigating the Nivix was equal parts an art as well as something you simply learned through experience. In some cases she felt safer on the streets of Ravnica than inside the halls of the Nivix because of the myriad of dangers. That had been the third explosion she heard just now and had at least heard the signs of two more before. 

“Hello Shura,” Iskra said. Perhaps a bit too coldly than what was necessary.  
The man stooped over a desk in front of her turned around, a look of surprise appearing on his face as he suddenly recognize her.  
“I-I-Iskra? What are you doing here? I thought you left?” He said in disbelief.  
“Oh I did. But I think you know why I’m here,” she replied frostily, her arms folded over her chest.  
Shura panicky lashed out against her, a lightning bolt flying from his open palm. It fizzled into nothing with a wave of her hand. She looked at him, sorely disappointed.  
“Really Shura? Is that really the road you want to go down with this?”  
His face grew pale as a trio of flaming orbs appeared in the palm of her hand. Each orb the size of an apple.  
“I- ahm,” he stammered, “Ehm...”  
“Well?”  
“But they’re the basis for all my research. Come on Isky-”  
One of the orbs zipped past his head, singing some of his hair, before exploding against the wall behind him. Igniting a stack of parchment in the process. She glared daggers at him.  
“Like hell you get to call me that again after all you did!” she spat furiously before composing herself again, “That was my research. Not yours. None of your half baked theories and ideas had any ground to stand upon if it wasn’t for my experiments.”  
Her eyes narrowed while glaring at him.  
“So don’t give me any of your insipid filibustering while you wait for help to arrive. I want my notes back Shura.”  
He shuffled nervously over to a large bookcase. Pulling on a secret lever the thing slid sideways to reveal a hidden storage compartment. He pulled out a leather folder that was stuffed to the brim with parchment.

But as he turned around to face her again there was a sudden gleam in his eyes as he looked over her shoulder.  
“On second thought,” He said with sudden glee, “I’m not going to give this to you. Get her my Blistercoil servant!”  
Iskra turned around to see a large and vaguely human looking creature rising up behind her. Made out of a mixture of black oily goo and fire the Weird readied to strike her with one of its large fists while Shura began cackling maniacally. 

His laughter suddenly died in his throat as Iskra blew a hole through his Weird assistant without flinching. The thing collapses into a wet puddle on the floor as it died. She looked at him and shook her head disappointingly. Shura seemed to visibly deflate before her and simply held out the folder to her while looking nowhere near her.  
The front cover read:  
“Notes on the practical applications of Multicolored Mana”  
By Iskra Szép  
“Niv’s teeth, You haven’t even bothered adding anything to it,” She said slightly disapprovingly as she briefly leafed through the parchments, seeing nothing but her handwriting everywhere she looked.  
Shura chose not to answer and simply looked down at his feet. Looking at him she wondered if he was on the verge of tears. She closed the folder and tucked it under her armpit.  
“Goodbye Shura,” she didn’t say much else. She didn’t need to say much else either.  
Iskra simply turned around on her heels and walked out of his laboratory, stepping over the slightly bubbling pool as something exploded with a small bang in the corner.


End file.
